Men, Water, and Christmas.

On Thursday I went to Metamorphoses and I loved it. At first I doubted whether I would like it or not because I do not really know much about Greek mythology but as it turns out, I knew more than I thought. I loved how they used the pool and how we got to sit on stage. It made the play that much more incredible to watch. I wanted so badly to have my camera and those gorgeous girls coming out of the water for a photo shoot. Grr. What a lovely thing.

Anyway, the playwright and the actors involved portrayed king Midas and his story perfectly. I liked the modern twist on the way he treated his family. The girl who played the daughter was really funny. King Midas was spot on as well.

What was really cool about the play was that each person had multiple characters and parts to play. My favorite was when Hunger was involved because that actress did really well. It was really great to see all of people acting as many things. What was really cool was seeing allusions from Greek mythology in present day movies and books.

The story of Midas reminds me of ELF because Walter ignores buddy and It takes until the end of the story for Walter to realize how much he cares for buddy. Even though Walter does not turn everything he touches into gold, he does neglect everything he has for his work, which is what Midas ultimately does. It takes him a really long time and lots of hurt to finally realize how important family is.

Overall, the play was amazing and I loved it. Thank you for suggesting that we go! It was great!

I really like how we are reading Hamlet.  It really helps discussing literature like this as a class. I really like to hear how others think of whatever it is that we are reading. Everyone see’s everything so differently. This was true especially when we were discussing Hamlets mental “state” (hahahaha) IS he mad? Or does he just SEEM mad? What are Hamlets thoughts? I sort of feel like this is like “All the Kings Men”  because Hamlet knows too much and as we all know “the end of man is knowledge” I think Hamlet knows too much to be considered sane.

 Today when I was paraphrasing the “to be or not to be” speech I noticed how “seems vs is” is interwoven into every other theme we have noticed.  There is a lot of “state” and societal themes all focusing around that one phrase. Shakespeare is truly a genius.

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Today when we read Hamlet you had Jonathon and Viki go up and act out the scene where Ophelia is explaining what had just happened between her and Hamlet. You told Jonathon to take of his shoe and scruff himself up. Viki just stood there like the gorgeous creature she is. Honestly at this point I thought you were crazy. I wondered why you felt acting this out was necessary. How could this scene change our views of the play? I was unsure of how his could possibly be important.

So as the scene played out Viki stood there just like beautiful Ophelia. Jonathon stood there in his thoughts and stared too as if she is some rare being. He stared. He held her. Then he sighed. I wondered if he was crazy. And then our class had the discussion. Is Hamlet crazy or is her acting. IS he crazy or does he just SEEM crazy? I believe he is not crazy because he warns people that he might be acting crazy for a while but to not mention what had happened. I think that he has just seen the ghost of his father and he is just reacting in whichever way he thinks he is supposed to react.

Hamlet reminds me of a character in a book I’m reading now because they both let everyone and their actions shape how they are supposed to be. I’m reading looking for Alaska and even though this story does not follow the same plotline as Hamlet, the characters are still similar. Pudge and Hamlet both have a beautiful girl that, at times, seems impossible to get. They both start acting crazy because their friends are near and they shape them into that. The events that are happening lead them to question who they are until they start acting completely crazy. In the novel, Pudge, who is not pudgy at all, gets taped together and thrown into the lake by his enemies at his new school. This event is similar to when Hamlet see’s his father because for Pudge fitting in was the only thing that mattered. He was quiet before boarding school. He never used to get revenge. It was like he did not even know what revenge was. But, this boarding school and this event had taught him what boarding school was. As for Hamlet his father being gone was really on his mind. Hamlet was lost after this event. Completely opposite to what he was before, like Pudge. So not completely alike but pretty close. Both of these characters are easily shaped and have some huge crazy thing happens that changes who they are.

I really wish I had gone to Metamorphoses this weekend because I would have made such a great blog about it. I am so glad that they have more shows! That’s so exciting and I can’t wait. BEWARE: metamorphoses blog coming soon!

Cain, Claudius, and Fiances! Oh my!

Okay, well today has been rough so this probably will stink. My friend Bri called me earlier today and told me that her friend Katie was murdered. The murderer was the girls own fiancé, which made me think of the story of Cain and Able, because they were family. In this case, they were almost a family. WHY DO FAMILY MEMBERS MURDER FAMILY MENBERS? It is horrible. How can brothers kill brothers and husbands kill wives? It is horrible and way to common, which leads me to another example where family members kill family members, Hamlet. I remember that in Hamlet Claudius, Hamlets uncle, poisons his father just to become king. People will do anything to be more powerful that the person above them. Gross.

            Now, on a happier note… I was watching the Kardashians prove how stupid they are this morning on T.V. Keeping up with the Kardashians is so lame. I was thankful for you and all of the lovely things you have taught us over the years. Seriously. Thank you for shaping so semi-smart human beings.  J J J Can smileys count as words?

            Okay, now to analyze something. Oh yay. I feel like analyzing some words from my favorite hermit.

I had no time to hate

By: Emily Dickinson

I had no time to Hate --
Because
The Grave would hinder Me --
And Life was not so
Ample I
Could finish -- Enmity --

Nor had I time to Love --
But since
Some Industry must be --
The little Toil of Love --
I thought
Be large enough for Me --

The first three lines are Emily Dickinsons way of saying that she had no time to hate because death would come soon and it is not really logical to spend her life focusing on hate and all of the emotions that go along with hate. Life is not long enough to “finish” hate. Then in the second stanza, she is saying that she does not have to love either. She does say thought that she must do something. “Some industry must be” possible to partake in. She writes that the “little Toil of Love” is large enough for her, though she is clearly doubtful about embracing life with death so near, she does realize that she must face the normal aspects of life.  I think it is significant that toil and love are uppercase. Toil, usually meaning struggle or difficult, is capitalized to show how Emily Dickinson feels about love. Love is also written in uppercase to show that the two feelings go together.

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Well, I do not know what to blog about considering the fact that I was only in class for one day this week. So… sorry if this post is not up to par. I really want to grow as a writer this semester. I mean I believe that I am a decent writer, but my formal writing style needs some attention. Also, I need to figure out a way to annotate without only focusing on annotating because oftentimes I get distracted with making sure I have enough annotations, which, ends up hurting me rather than helping me.

Over the break I read White Oleander written by Janet Fitch for the 345938096^th time and each time I fall in love with it more. The story is about a mother and a daughter who face the world fearlessly, until the mother, Ingrid, murders her boyfriend. Her daughter Astrid, is left moving in and out of several foster homes throughout her high school life. At first she is lost because she and her mother were used to doing everything together. I fell in love with this novel because it highlights the several problems certain families face and loneliness, as well as the human condition. I love Fitch’s writing style it’s really poetic and makes you think. I love authors who write like that. One of her favorite writers is Edgar Allen Poe. I thought that was interesting because she writes like he does and so does the poet in the novel, Ingrid. Like many authors, Janet Fitch put a little bit of herself in her characters. The poet is the character that reflects Fitch’s personality the most obviously. They both value literature. They both are writers.

Last month I read this book seriously like five times. I had to rip it up and make art out of it so I would not read it again. Then I bought another one. Yikes! Basically, this is me asking me for new books to read. Books about anything would be nice. I don’t even care anymore. I just want to read anything but White Oleander again. I get attached to certain books and have no way of growing unattached until I read another book that is equally touching. It’s become a problem. J Grr. I’m such a nerd. Thanks Ms Clinch. Oh well, I love being an AP Lit nerd. It has become very rewarding. Plus, our class is so great.